Some of the steam may be may be coming out of the housing market, according to the latest figures from Quotable Value (QV).

According to QV's latest residential property value index, the recent growth of property values slowed in January, led by a slight fall in in central Auckland, from December figures.

"Property-value growth has slowed down in the first month of the year," QV.co.nz research director Jonno Ingerson said.

"The January index shows that nationwide values increased 0.3 per cent in January compared to December, while a month earlier the increase was 1.3 per cent. So while values are still increasing, the rate of this increase has slowed considerably."

Much of that easing appears to have occurred in Auckland, where Ingerson said a pattern of slowing value increases was evident.

This was most apparent in the suburbs in central Auckland (defined by the boundaries of the former Auckland City Council) where average values dropped 0.2 per cent in January.

"In most parts of central Auckland the January index shows a slight decrease in values in the last month, while across wider Auckland the rate of growth slowed," Ingerson said.

"Most of the other main centres also slowed considerably to the point where values were either flat or slightly decreased in the past month."

Ingerson said the loan-to-valuation limits on low-deposit mortgages introduced by the Reserve Bank last year, and pending rises in mortgage interest rates were making buyers more cautious.

"This caution is offsetting any potential upward pressure on prices due to a lack of listings in many areas," he said.

However, property values throughout the country, were still well up on where they were a year ago, with the national average in January being 9.6 per cent higher than the same month last year.

The biggest value gain occurred in the Waitakere district of Auckland where average values were up 19.2 per cent compared with a year ago.The average residential property values in January and change since January 2013 in the main centres were: